Beasts

Contents

Direwolves are a type of enemy in Battle Brothers. They are fast and dangerous, as they will quickly charge, flank, and overwhelm a target in numbers. They have a chance to drop Unusually Large Wolf Pelts. Can attack 3 times if they don't move.

There are two types of Direwolves: simple ones and Frenzied Direwolves, which feature is "Overwhelm" perk. Also they are slightly different in animation (easily recognized by the name).

Use sword and riposte skill to return more missed blows than you could otherwise deal yourself. Terrain advantage will give to-hit bonus for riposte

Once in melee, concentrate on one opponent until his death causes others to break, then hit with free attacks when routing from melee

Stunning a Direwolf equates to 3 attacks that you won't have to take next turn.

Drop rate of their pelts, adrenal glands and meat appears to be linked to combined condition of head and torso armour upon death, making using puncture almost always guarantee a drop. Head only kills like with a flails Lash appears to yield about a 66% drop rate.

Nachzehrers are a type of enemy in Battle Brothers. They count as beasts, but because they feast on corpses, they are often seen in company with the Undead or Ancient Dead.

The peasantry tells stories of men and women coming back to life after the sin of committing suicide as horribly shaped monstrosities, turned into a Nachzehrer. They’re said to resemble grey-skinned devils that dig up graves with their claws and devour fresh corpses, even devour parts of themselves and their funeral shrouds, and to grow in strength as they do so until they inevitably prey on the living. Others may claim that they are but wild beasts, merely scavengers drawn to fresh graves like seagulls to fishing nets. Whatever their true nature, they bring misery and disease upon any village they bedevil.

The creature known as Nachzehrer can grow up to two times as it gorges itself on a corpse, and it’s not shy of cannibalizing its own kind. Each time it does so, it increases in size and strength significantly. At its largest, when it’s become a hulking behemoth of grey flesh, it gains the ability to swallow a man whole. Anyone devoured like this isn’t dead, but in the belly of the beast and removed from the map. Slaying the Nachzehrer will free that character again, albeit covered in goo, but retreating while a character is devoured in this way will spell certain death for him.

A Nachzehrer has long claws that they use to dig through the earth in search of food, and which can tear grievous wounds in combat. The larger the Nachzehrer, the more dangerous the claws become. On the bright side, a Nachzehrer doesn’t have any armor, which favors swords and cleavers, and it gets easier to hit with ranged weapons, the larger and less nimble it becomes.

Large Nachzehrers have about 200hps, about 70 melee skill, high base melee defense (+15) but only decent based ranged defense (+10).

Giant Nachzehrers have about 380hps, about 80 melee skill and has a Devour attack that automatically hits and swallows the target, higher base melee defense (+20) and low base ranged defense (+5). Can heal fully (need more samples) when eating a corpse.

Giant Nachzehrers, when "eating" and swallows one of your mercernary, it will inflict 5 damage per turn (to confirm with more sample please).

Weaknesses

Has 0 armor, so all damage affects hitpoints.

Easy to kill at their first stages.

Attracted to dead bodies. Killing a nachzehrer and spearwall around the body can result in additional kills.

Low morale.

Can only move one tile and devour in the same turn. And often deny each other by jumping on corpses that another closer nachzehrer could have eaten in the same turn.

Tactics

Protect dead bodies, so they can not feast and become confident and stronger. Only kill a Nachzehrer if you have means of preventing others from consuming its dead body; otherwise let them stay alive. Feasting requires AP. They can move 1 tile and still feast, but not 2.

They're dumb, often charging into spear walls.

When using ranged weapons against them in the initial charge, try to spread the damage out, don't take a shot with a weapon powerful enough to kill with a headshot. As it'll die somewhere you can't prevent others from eating it.

Be careful using dogs as you cannot control them, they can run off, die and get eaten by them.

Likewise be careful with spear walls, as it can create a body that another will then eat(provided it dodges the spearwall)

Lindwurms are a type of enemy in Battle Brothers. They are very dangerous two-tiles beasts. Tiles are always adjacent. The upper body will move first, followed by the tail.
The upper body and the tail share the same health and armour but attack differently:

tail has an 'area of effect' attack of three tiles, like great swords, called Tail Slam

upper body/head has a two-tile range attack, like polearms, called Gorge

When harmed in melee (direct HP damage), its blood spurts on the damage dealer and corrodes both his body and head armour at the rate of 10% of his armour each turn for three turns (the effect doesn't stack, but each time you deal damage to HP, the timer resets to three turns). They have a high chance to drop Lindwurm's Hoard and Acid Flask.

Only the upper body hex has zone of control. The tail hex has no zone of control.

Be careful to keep light-armoured brothers out of range of the upper-body attack, or have an armoured, shielded brother taunt the upper-body. If not, light-armoured brothers can be one-shot by the two-tile attack.

Cleavers are effective against them in melee because of blood loss, especially in big numbers (direct damage to HP without suffering the acidic blood effect).

Lindwurm drop initiative very quickly the more they're wounded or the more they fight.

The Unhold (DLC) is a lumbering giant, easily the size of three men, and dwarfing even the tallest orc. It eats whole sheep for a snack and empties a pond to wash it down. There’s tales of enraged Unholds leveling remote farms and plucking the limbs off of unlucky farmers like wings from insects, but closer examination will reveal that Unholds aren’t malicious creatures. They’re fiercely territorial, but may often be content to persuade with ear-deafening bellowing and threatening gestures any invaders to run for their lives. The Unhold is a somewhat solitary creature and can be found either alone or in small groups only.

There are 3 variants of unholds. The most common variant is found in the hills and tundra. Another variant is said to be found in swamps and sometimes forests, where they inhabit caves. The fiercest is the northern variant found in the snowy wastes, with white fur that protects equally against cold and steel.

Cleaver "decapitate" attacks do maximum damage when the Unhold is only partly injured due to its high health

Cleaver bleeds induce recovery, which can take some pressure off your men

Tactics

Their medium-low melee attack allows a tank brother to tie one or two up, letting you focus down others

Use indomitable to prevent tanks from knockback or being thrown

Use 2H mace attacks to Daze them, reducing their damage output

Polearm mastery allows backline brothers to move in + attack + move out so as to not be directly adjacent to the frontline. This prevents the backline from getting engaged when an Unhold flips a frontline brother

The Waldschrat, or Schrat (DLC) for short, is a fabled living tree found in the most remote forests of the world. A creature of bark and wood, it resembles no other, and its mind is truly alien. It blends between trees and shambles slowly, its roots digging through the soil. A frightening night time story tells of how trees watered with the blood of the unjustly killed turn into twisted living trees, out to strangle and choke the life out of children that don’t behave.

They attack in a 3-tile line, have high hp & spawn saplings when heavily damaged. They have a shield which heavily reduces damage taken, which they can regenerate.

The Webknecht (DLC) is a large arachnid that lives in sizable colonies in the dark areas of forests throughout the world of Battle Brothers. It’s there that they spin their webs between trees to trap anything from bird to deer and between. Unlike most other beasts, Webknechts don’t usually roam a lot, preferring instead to sit in their territory and wait until something unfortunate gets itself caught in one of their nets. Still, they’re known to choose the vicinity of settlements for their home on occasion and threaten the lives of villagers and their livestock.

The Hexe (DLC) is a witch inspired by Grimm’s fairy tales, a malevolent old crone living in swamps and forests outside of villages alone or in a coven with other Hexen. They’re human, but have long sacrificed their humanity for otherworldly powers. They’re feared, but also worshiped by some. They’re burned at the stake, and yet people seek them out to plead for miracles. They lure and abduct little children to make broth and concoctions out of, they strike terrible pacts with villagers to receive their firstborn, they weave curses and cast hexes. Their huts may or may not be made of candy. With her sorcery, a Hexe can enthrall wild beasts, and even warp the mind of humans, and so will often be found in the company of creatures that serve her.

The Alp (DLC) is a pale and haggard creature. It encroaches on settlements in the cover of night, invading the sleep of its helpless inhabitants with ghastful visions, and feeding on the fear and anguish of its victims like a parasite. Scholars speculate that Alps didn’t always look and behave like they do now; most Alps have eye sockets, but no eyes, and mouths with teeth, but only a rudimentary digestive system. Their pale skin peels like old parchment, their bones are frail, and their insides are dark and show signs of decay. Perhaps the Alp is the victim of an ancient curse, or perhaps it simply evolved from a different creature to the nocturnal predator it is now. Whatever it is, don’t fall asleep!